Published: January 4, 2026
“Did you learn anything from the history of the Parwar Empire?”
“Yeah.”
I nodded firmly.
At the same time, I slipped my arm around Audrey’s shoulder and gently patted her head.
“It may not directly lead to anything. It might end up being futile. But there’s one thing I want Audrey to do.”
“Yes. Please command me, Your Majesty.”
Audrey slipped away swiftly.
She stepped out of my arms, stood directly in front of me, and looked me squarely in the eyes.
The atmosphere she had been radiating just moments ago changed instantly.
Her quick shift impressed me.
“Starting tomorrow, while I’m still in the Imperial Capital is fine. I want you to hold a tea gathering—invite Oscar’s main wife, the main wives and concubines of princes and high ministers.”
“...What should I try to find out?”
Audrey was a clever woman.
She immediately understood this wasn’t just some idle amusement.
“Of course, the most effective is to listen to the bedtime stories.”
“That’s true.”
Audrey nodded decisively.
Bedtime stories mean conversations between a man and a woman in the boudoir.
“It’s strange, but for some reason, both in the past and now, most men tend to babble about all sorts of things to the women they’re intimate with.”
“Surely they want to show their good side to the women.”
“I see.”
I nodded quietly.
That made sense.
“If so, wouldn’t it be enough to just talk to Oscar’s main wife?”
“If something is going on—”
I said with a serious face.
“Oscar alone can’t do much. He’d have to involve many influential ministers.”
“...Indeed.”
“Besides, for preliminary groundwork, you might get them to inadvertently slip up with something like, ‘Prince eighth has been visiting our people quite often lately.’ If it’s not decided to move yet, they can’t really be warned to keep quiet.”
“That’s true. Trying to stop that would only make it more suspicious.”
“Exactly.”
“As expected of Your Majesty. Understood. Leave that to me.”
“Do you think you can manage?”
“If it’s just women chatting, no problem. I might occasionally use Your Majesty as a topic to stir things up—”
“Hahaha, that’s fine. Tear me apart as much as you want.”
I looked up to the sky and laughed heartily.
It’s women’s gossip, so I could pretty much imagine the content.
Whether emperor or prince, maybe it’s not so different after all.
If I can get information just by being badmouthed somewhere I don’t know, it’s a small price to pay.
“I’m counting on you, Audrey.”
“Yes...”
Audrey smiled gently, changed her aura again, and quietly nestled back into my arms.
☆
The next day, at Alice’s shop.
With the personal military campaign looming, it was my last day to go out into town.
After tonight, preparations would accelerate rapidly, and I wouldn’t be free at all, so I came here now to relax.
Alice was singing on the stage.
She would come along as a distraction for this campaign, so I wanted to listen to her now.
I wanted to hear her pure singing, free of any distractions.
Technique-wise, nothing would change, but singing—music—clearly reflects human emotions at the moment.
I believe Alice’s best singing can only be heard in this shop.
With that in mind, I listened to her song from a special seat the owner prepared for me, someone I knew.
“Um, excuse me...”
“Hm?”
I was spoken to from the side.
I turned my gaze and saw a timid-looking young man standing there.
He looked obviously cautious of his surroundings and nervously stared at me.
“Hey, you—”
He spoke right in the middle of Alice’s song, as if to interrupt.
Noticing this, the shop owner standing a little distance away gave him an angry look but controlled himself so as not to disturb Alice’s singing, and quietly approached the young man.
“Enough.”
I raised my hand to stop the owner.
The owner bowed quietly and stepped back, returning to his position when I indicated it was fine.
The owner stays nearby when I’m here to react immediately if something happens—just like now.